Vale Richard “Sighty” Hammond

Vale Richard “Sighty” Hammond

I was saddened to here the passing of Richard “Sighty” Hammond one of Australia’s most famous ocean racing sailors and foremost navigators who could navigate seriously well before all the high tech gadgets of today. He navigated Sydney-Hobart winners multiple times and many overseas win’s over a long career that included doing 40 Sydney-Hobart races. Check out the detailed article on sailworld.com . I met Sighty many years ago when I was a teenager doing a match racing regatta in Sydney with Bernie Case. A couple of years later Sighty provided me and my cash starved J24 crew a room at his home when we were racing out of Middle Harbour. Not only did he provide us accommodation but rose early and cooked us breakfast which we all enjoyed as it came with Sighty’s many sailing stories from ocean racing to 18 footers. He was a true gentleman and will be missed.